What causes bed bugs and and how to get rid of them

Photo Credit: Molekule

Bedbugs aren't a welcome sight in any home and having them can come as quite a shock to most people. When you have a few, there's always more, and they multiply very quickly and cause irritating bites all over our bodies. Bedbugs thrive on human and animal blood, and they mainly consume it at night while we're sleeping. In the middle of the night, while you're asleep, they are drawn to our body heat, and they latch onto our skin and draw blood out to feast on. It sounds pretty gross which is why you'll want to get rid of these pests as soon as possible. So what causes bedbugs in the first place? Bedbugs can enter your home when you've picked them up from somewhere else. Bedbugs are mainly spread through travel and staying in places where they exist. They won't just jump onto your clothing or your body, but they will attach to your suitcases, backpacks, briefcases, used furniture and mattresses. Even though one bedbug may not seem like a lot, just one female bedbug can start an infestation according to Christina Vanvuren from Molekule. A female bedbug can actually lay 2 to 5 eggs each day which leads to hundreds of bedbugs each week, and they can survive without feeding on blood.

While these bugs, unlike other bugs, don't carry diseases they are still very annoying and cause horrible itchy bites all over your body. They can also live up to 20 feet away from your bed and still thrive because they just have to make it to you at night when you're sleeping. There are also a lot of myths surrounding bedbugs including the myth that they only survive in dirty environments. They can be found in some pretty nice and clean hotels, but they also do thrive in unclean homes too. They don't care if the place is dirty or clean, they just want blood. The best thing to do is to prevent bedbugs from coming home with you in the first place. Since travelling is one of the most common ways people get bedbugs, always inspect the rooms you're staying in while you're travelling and keep your belongings out of the room while you do so. Look for live bugs, rust-coloured spots on bedding or anywhere else from if the bugs were squished. You can also find the shedding skins. If you happen to find any of these things, let the hotel management know right away since they will be legally required to take care of this and provide you with an alternative arrangement.

You can also get bedbugs from the airport, so keep your suitcase and luggage wrapped in plastic and always wash your clothes right when you return from travelling. The best cleaning tip is to wash all of your clothing and items you brought with you regardless of whether you wore them or not in hot water and soap and dry them on high heat which will kill the bedbugs if there are any. Also, inspect everything before you bring it into your home. You'll also want to inspect any home you move into for bedbugs before you move in so your landlord can get rid of them before you settle in. If you are already living in your home and you suspect you have bedbugs, it's very important to deal with it right away before it can get any worse. While it might seem overwhelming, there are some great cleaning tips for getting rid of bed bugs that you can follow on the Molekule website that will have you on top of the problem in no time.***